Contraception is just that “contra-inception,” it opposes the inception of new human life. Put another way, these are methods of preventing unwanted pregnancy. There is a rich and important debate revolving around the ethics of contraception, especially where they might overlap with abortifacients. But setting that debate aside for a moment, both pro-choicers and pro-lifers can agree that its better to not have people getting pregnant who do not want pregnancy, than to have a whole spate of unwanted pregnancies. The “cure” might be to “want” the pregnancies, to “terminate” the pregnancies, or to prevent pregnancies. But the point of agreement should still be clear.

Below is a chart by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) on the effectiveness of various birth control methods at preventing pregnancy. Their statistics are usually pretty good, though sometimes incomplete. Those who read this chart should be aware that these statistics do not address whether the pregnancy-prevention method prevents fertilization (conception of a new human life) or implantation (where the conceptus/zygote implants on the uterine wall). This difference is, by many pro-life advocates, a matter of life and death since the former would be contraception (purely speaking) the latter would be an early stage abortion.